Most french fried potato strips (or so-called "french fries") consumed by consumers are prepared and sold by fast food restaurants. Most fast food restaurants (as well as many others) prepare french fries by frying frozen potato strips purchased from suppliers, with 1/4 inch "shoe string" french fries being the most popular. Fast food restaurants typically "finish fry" frozen potato strips for about 21/4 to 23/4 minutes, and sometimes longer. The resulting french fries preferably have a solids content of about 55-60% by weight to provide the best flavor and texture.
Two common processes used in preparing french fries for fast food restaurants are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,397,993 to Strong and U.S. Pat. No. 3,649,305 to Wilder.
The Strong patent discloses a process in which raw potato strips are blanched until they become translucent throughout, dried in hot air at a temperature within the range of 150.degree. F. to 350.degree. F. for 5 to 20 minutes to cause a weight loss of at least 20%, parfried in oil at a temperature within the range of 300.degree. F. to 375.degree. F. for 15 to 60 seconds, and then frozen. The Strong patent indicates that the frozen strips may be reconstituted by frying them in oil at a temperature within the range of 300.degree. F. to 375.degree. F. for 11/2 to 31/2 minutes, although in each of the four examples provided, the frozen strips are finish fried for at least 21/2 minutes.
The Wilder patent discloses a process in which raw potato strips are dried in circulating air at a temperature within the range of 150.degree. F. to 350.degree. F. to cause a weight loss of 10% to 30%, blanched, parfried, cooled and then frozen. The patent indicates that the frozen strips may be reconstituted by frying them in oil at a temperature of about 325.degree. F. to 375.degree. F. for about 11/2 to 3 minutes, although the preferred frying time is indicated to be 21/4 minutes. No specific examples are provided.
Notwithstanding the foregoing processes, there is and has been a strong need, particularly in the fast food industry, for frozen french fries which can be prepared faster than those heretofore available. More specifically, there is a need for frozen potato strips which can be finish fried in less than two minutes without sacrificing product quality.
One of the main objectives of fast food restaurants is to serve customers as quickly as possible and yet still provide high quality food products. Because it takes about 21/2 minutes to finish fry frozen potato strips and additional preparation time once the resulting french fries are removed from the fryer, it is difficult for fast food restaurants to prepare french fries on demand without having customers wait for their orders. Thus, such restaurants are often forced to anticipate customer demand by frying batches of french fries ahead of time. However, it is difficult to anticipate precisely customer demand at any given time. If restaurant employees underestimate forthcoming customer demand, the customers may have to wait for their orders, possibly causing congestion or long lines at the counters where orders are taken and creating customer dissatisfaction. It is much preferable to serve customers at the counter immediately after their orders are taken to minimize congestion at the order counter or, alternatively, to avoid restaurant employees having to serve the customers at their tables. On the other hand, if restaurant employees overestimate forthcoming customer demand, the extra french fries must be stored under heat lamps until an order for french fries is placed or, if enough time passes, discarded because the quality of the product is less than satisfactory. Customers much prefer to have french fries served piping hot shortly after frying.
Thus, fast food and other restaurants need a frozen french fry product that can be prepared in less time than those products presently available without sacrificing product quality. A "short-refry" product would make it much easier for such restaurants to prepare french fries on demand, instead of ahead of time, thereby minimizing customer waiting time once the order is placed. It would also be much easier to serve french fries just out of the fryer to customers. Any prior attempts at developing a short-refry product to meet this need apparently have been unsuccessful in producing a product of comparable quality to conventional products (which are finish fried for over two minutes).
Additionally, there is and has been a strong need for "low solids" potato strips of improved quality. Most restaurants prefer frozen potato strips having a solids content of 36-40% by weight which, when finish fried for about 21/2 minutes, produce a final product having the desired solids content of about 55-60% by weight. However, some restaurants prefer frozen potato strips having a lower solids content of about 28-33% by weight. Such "low solids" potato strips can be prepared more easily, quickly and less expensively by the frozen potato strip supplier. However, when "low solids" potato strips are finish fried, again for about 21/2 minutes, they have a solids content toward the lower end and even below the preferred range of 55-60% and exhibit a flavor and texture somewhat less desirable than those prepared from frozen potato strips having a higher solids content. Thus, there is a need for a process for preparing "low solids" french fries having an improved quality which more closely corresponds to the quality of french fries prepared from frozen potato strips having a higher solids content.
Other processes for preparing potato products are identified below.
Chase U.S. Pat. No. 2,597,065 discloses a process in which potatoes are steamed, washed in cold water and then cut into strips. The potato strips are blanched, dried, cooled and then frozen. The frozen strips are reconstituted by finish frying them in oil at a temperature of 375.degree. F. for about 3 minutes.
Buechele et al. U.S. Pat. No. 2,855,308 discloses a process in which potato pieces are first fried at a temperature of 350.degree.-380.degree. F., again fried at a temperature of 250.degree.-300.degree. F., and then frozen.
Vahlsing U.S. Pat. No. 3,175,914 discloses a process in which raw potato strips are blanched, washed in water, fried and then frozen. The frozen strips are reconstituted by finish frying.
McLaughlin et al. U.S. Pat. No. 3,355,299 discloses a process in which raw potato strips are water blanched, oil blanched and frozen. The frozen strips are subject to a three stage reconstitution, namely, frying for 3 to 5 minutes at 300.degree. F. to 340.degree. F., air cooling to reduce product temperature to at least 120.degree. F., and then frying at 300.degree. F. to 340.degree. F. for 11/2 to 2 minutes.
Sloan U.S. Pat. No. 3,644,129 discloses a process in which raw potato pieces are blanched, cooled, blanched again, freeze dried and then air dried.
Weaver U.S. Pat. No. 3,934,046 discloses a process in which raw potato strips are parfried, leached in water, parfried, dried in hot air (in one embodiment) and then frozen. The frozen strips are finish fried in oil at a temperature of 365.degree. F. for at least 21/2 minutes.
Ross et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,254,153 discloses a process in which raw potato strips are blanched, dried in fast moving ambient air for a period of time sufficient to cause a weight reduction of 8% to 15%, dried in circulating heated air to cause an additional weight reduction of 8% to 15%, parfried and then frozen. Two examples are provided, one in which the frozen strips are finish fried at 360.degree. F. for 23/4 minutes and another in which the frozen strips are finish fried at 340.degree. F. for 21/4 minutes, although it is generally indicated that the strips may be finish fried for about 11/2 to 31/2 minutes.
Wicklund et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,277,510 discloses a process for preparing potato chips in which potatoes are peeled, blanched, and then sliced into chips. The chips are dried, steam blanched and fried.
European Patent Application 80302639.2, published Apr. 8, 1981, discloses a process in which raw potato strips are blanched, cooled, blanched again, starch coated, oil soaked, parfried, and then frozen. The frozen strips are reconstituted by oven heating.
It is therefore one object of the present invention to provide a process for preparing frozen french fried potato strips which can be prepared in less time than heretofore available products without sacrificing product quality.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a process for preparing frozen french fried potato strips as aforesaid having, upon reconstitution, a uniformly golden, desirably crisp outer surface, a mealy and cohesive potato interior, and a desirable flavor and texture.
Another object of the invention is to provide a process for preparing "low solids" frozen potato strips of improved quality.
A further object is to provide a process for preparing low solids frozen potato strips having, upon reconstitution, a uniformly golden, desirably crisp outer surface, a mealy and cohesive potato interior, and a desirable flavor and texture.
Another object of the invention is to provide a versatile process which can be used to prepare either low solids french fries or short-refry french fries merely by varying select time and temperature parameters of the process, thereby permitting a single production line to be easily used in the preparation of both products with minimal adjustment.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description.